Jillian Michaels is the DEVIL...

But her 30 Day Shred promises that I will lose 20lbs in 30 days so...

On a whim, while shopping at Target, I decided to pick up this DVD. I have only heard good things about this DVD and was ready to add some oomph into my exercise routine. Wowza. I can't remember the last time I sweat that much! I have heard that people have a hard time walking the following day, I suppose I will see in the morning!

Also, I am excited to announce that I am down 15.1 pounds! Friday was the halfway mark for the Biggest Loser competition and I am almost to my goal of 20lbs. I honestly cannot believe that I have been so successful. It helps that I am staying quite busy this summer as I tend to eat (or munch rather) when I am bored!



I have about 5 pounds to go to reach my first goal, which is to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight of 165. Since I am halfway through this competition I decided to take updated photos and measurements. I almost didn't take any measurements, but I am so glad that I did. Even though I am down 15 pounds, the changes in my updated front, side and back pictures were not as obvious as I had hoped. Had I not taken my measurements I wouldn't know that I have actually lost 2 inches in my waistline!

My next goal is to be able to wear my most favorite pair of capri jeans. They are size 12 and while I can finally put them on AND button them, they are definitely still tight in the hips and butt and I am all set with showing off my muffin top!

The Baptism of Evan

Today we celebrated Evan's baptism. He stole the show at the church, smiling for the congregation. He knew it was his day and he really shined! Here are some pictures from Evan's special day!

Evan's gown made from my the last parts of my wedding dress:


At the Atkinson Congregational Church with Pastor Paul:


Evan and his Godparents


Our Family!


Me and Evan


Tuckered Out!

I'm a Loser Baby...

The day before I went to the hospital to have Evan I was weighed at the doctor's office. My final weight was 215 pounds. That is the most I have ever weighed in my entire life. I brushed it off though, telling myself that it's all baby. When Evan was born and they told me he was almost 10 pounds I thought to myself...see, all baby! The morning after I brought Evan home, I weighed myself again. I was 197 pounds. I was a little disappointed, but reminded myself that I am nursing and it will keep coming down quickly. And I was right, by the time Evan was 2 weeks old I was down to 185 pounds. Great, I thought! I'll be back to my pre-pregnancy weight in no time. WRONG! My body had reached it's plateau and that was that.

I admit, I felt really down about the fact that breastfeeding wasn't going to help me drop the 20 pounds I needed just to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I started researching weight watchers and trying to decide if it would be right for me. I talked with my sister who has recently lost a TON of weight. I turned to my Mommy Board where there is a "Get Fit" folder for some information. That is when I saw the before and after pictures from our boards version of "the Biggest Loser". At the beginning of the year some of the mom's got together and started it. I was pregnant during the first two rounds and never participated, but I was in awe at the before and after pictures that the women would post! The transformation was amazing. I knew that I would want to join after Evan was born but I didn't think I could do it this soon. I continued to make up excuses, and I hemmed and hawed and missed the deadline to sign up. The contest started June 18th and if I wanted to do it I was going to have to wait the 12 weeks for the next round. I was bummed and so I figured I could try and do it on my own but I knew I would continue to make excuses. So imagine my excitement when I logged onto the board the following Monday and saw a thread that read "Last Call for Biggest Losers!" I put my name on the thread and got access to the folder.

The rules are simple: weigh in on Friday by midnight Pacific time and you have to post a picture of your feet on the scale showing your number. There is a $20 entry fee that is not required but recommended and in order to win the money, the winner will have to post for the entire board to see their before and after pictures. Yes, I made Charlie take the "before" pictures, and NO, you will not be made privy to them! But I will show you my first weigh in!

Here is my feet on the scale for the first weigh in:


And this is me June 12th, a little over a week before I joined the competition:


It has been four weeks since I started this journey to a healthier me, and I feel GREAT! I am not on any special diet (ie: Weight Watchers, Atkins, etc.) because they don't work, at least for me! This is a lifestyle change. I am making better choices about food and cutting out as much processed crap that I can (Thank you Jamie Oliver!). And because of this I can have my cake (or ice cream rather) and eat it too! Everything in moderation, even Brian's Chocolate Covered Bacon! When you make your own foods, you know EXACTLY what goes into it!

And so drum roll please, my weigh-in as of last Friday:


I have lost a total of 11.2 pounds which is 6.04% of my body weight! My BMI has gone from 33.9 to 31.9!



My goal for the first round of Biggest Loser is to get down to my pre-pregnancy weight of 165. I have 8 more weeks until the end of the competition and I am feeling very confident that I will reach that goal and perhaps even more. But slow and steady wins the race so no rushing this here!

And nothing like a new hair cut and color to make me feel really confident and good about myself!


I owe a lot of my success to the women on my board who are doing this with me. There is so much support when people have a bad day. There are ups, downs, successes and fails, but there is someone always there to offer up tips, advice, and hugs. Another reason for my success is the accountability, and so I am sharing my journey on my blog as well. The more accountable I can be the better I will do! I'll also be using my food blog, Splash of This to post my favorite healthy dishes. And who knows, maybe I'll help motivate someone out there who, like me, kept making excuses while looking for the easy way out.

Vacationland!

Ahhh! So we are on vacation in Maine and it has been so nice! Nice to have the Doc around more and nice to be able to just relax as a family with our friends! Here are some pictures of the kids enjoying our first vacation as a family of five!

Evan has been awesome on his first vacation! This was taken while we were out to dinner at Dos Amigos! He was a awake the entire time and was just content to look around and smile at me!


Me and the Doc at Dos Amigos!


Shaun's new favorite "toy"


David and Maddie! These two only see each other a few times a year and they always seem to pick up right where they left off!


One of the best parts about our visit to Maine is heading over to the lake! It was a little rough but David did so well swimming through the waves!

Daddy & Shaun


David Swimming


Jumping off the dock to Daddy


Evan Slept the entire time


Shaun found a really BIG tractor!


Tonight the Docs finished the swing set project! I don't have the finished pictures yet but here are some of the process. Since the kids outnumber the adults and a party to get ready for, the build took longer than it would. But the goal was to finish before Saturday and they did it! It's so cool!

Hard at work:


David helping


Shaun helping


David, Shaun & Owen helping

Evan: 2 Months

Today we took Chunk for his 2 month well visit. Everything looked great! He really is the best baby! He has had his routine down for quite some time now and even though he is still waking for night feedings, I am only up with him for no more than 15 minutes. Oh and just as we expected he still lives up to his nickname!

Weight: 14 lbs 13oz (91st percentile)
Height: 23 inches (30th percentile)

It is no wonder he is wearing 6 month clothes already! In fact I have officially unpacked all of the 6 month clothes and sorted all of the summer stuff. All our newborn and 0-3 month clothes were packed up for the very last time!

Shaun also had his well visit today. He did so well even when the must gave him his two shots. He is right on track for height and weight, and he has started to show a little interest in using the potty! Next week he has his first session with early intervention and our goal is to help him with saying more words and saying them correctly.

Shaun's stats:
Weight: 29 lbs (58th percentile)
Height: 2ft 10.65 (47th percentile)

Happy 4th of July!!

What a great weekend!! The weather was perfect, hot but at least it wasn't hazy and humid! We had a great time celebrating and we hope you all did too! Check out Evan celebrating his first 4th of July wearing his new festive onesie from Old Navy!



On Saturday we took the boys to the Annual 4th (or 3rd, rather!) of July Celebration at Hill Park. Shaun was old enough this year to enjoy the bounce houses and he had a blast! They also had pony rides, Silly Willy the Clown, slush, cotton candy and tattoos! The best part is that it is all FREE!

David riding the pony!


Shaun going down the slide in the bounce house


David and Shaun going down the really BIG slide together!


David getting himself a sweet tattoo


Then on the 4th we hit the beach for the morning. It was even hotter than Saturday so a perfect day for the beach. After the beach we headed home to get ready to grill some burgers and dogs with our friends! The boys got to roast marshmallows and David got to twirl some sparklers!!

Shaun and Daddy roasting marshmallows!


Sparklers!


Evan and Daddy!

Summer in the City

This week has been what Summer was all about. Even though Monday was pretty humid, we hung out by the pool so it didn't seem as hot. The rest of the week was absolutely beautiful! We had fun hanging out with family, at the beach and having picnics at different parks!

Hanging at the Pool!



Fun at Short Beach



Piers Park - this park is beautiful, it over looks the harbor, has an amazing view of Boston and and has a sprinkler to keep cool!





The amazing view!